Ethical way of life

[Alexia]

Does vegan or vegetarianism influence other things in your life like ethical banking, stores or companies? I try to do as much as I can, but I have to be practical as well. I have friends who refuse to go to certain supermarkets because of their ethics, but sometimes I find you can't lead a pure ethical and budget proof life.

It's a compromise, and some people are more militant about it, but I find a practical approach is better. For example my ex-flatmate refused to buy Primark, but I gave her a fleece from there as part of her bedding and she would use it.

 

[dawnwan]

Does vegan or vegetarianism influence other things in your life like ethical banking, stores or companies? I try to do as much as I can, but I have to be practical as well. I have friends who refuse to go to certain supermarkets because of their ethics, but sometimes I find you can't lead a pure ethical and budget proof life.

It's a compromise, and some people are more militant about it, but I find a practical approach is better. For example my ex-flatmate refused to buy Primark, but I gave her a fleece from there as part of her bedding and she would use it.

No.  The reason I do not eat meat is not an ethical choice.  I do understand, appreciate, and respecit others stance on this issue, but this is not why I choose not to partake.  Nevertheless, I do prefer organic, and don't eat meat, due to the taste.

At the same time, I like to shop at the farmers market because I like to support local growers.  Same goes for shopping in general.  I will chose a mom and pop shop over a chain store every time, but the reality is that this is not always possible. Now, if a company or business personally offends me, I will not shop there.  This is more in relation to poor customer services .

 

[sugarbooger]

With the Citizens United ruling, I find it harder and harder to vote with my dollars. Corporations have so much power now, it is hard to make ethical choices. I read that if you go to any supermarket, of all the food there, it's all traced back to five owners. If I want to buy something made by an all organic vegan company who employs fair trade practices, that company may have a parent company who bankrolls policy makers that support giving tax benefits to companies that outsource and use exploitative business practices.

With superpacs, unlimited dollars, and cloaking where donations are coming from, it is hard to tell where my hard-earned money goes. I will always try to shop locally, but even a local healthfood store spent money in a race against marriage equality. It was very upsetting, because now I avoid that store like the plague, but I really loved the products I was getting. I highly support equality and never knew the store I shopped at would have a vote in the matter.

Until we admit that corporations are not people, I think it will continue to get harder and harder to make ethical decisions because more and more information will be kept from the consumer.

 

[jillyan10]

Yes, it does really affect other things in your life if you really are a true vegan. People who are said to be vegan won't purchase and use any product that came from animals such cows, sheeps, deer and others. They refuse to buy products or garments wherein it came from skin or parts of animals. I am sure they help out in ways to prevent animals being disposed easily. They don't see animals as a consumable good, but they see them as a fellow living organism.

 

[Rizwani]

The ethical argument that vegans use to defend their position is very interesting to me. I like to view humanity as custodians, custodians of everything around us simply because we are conscious beings. More specifically, we are conscious of our selves and the effects of our actions on other living creatures and on the environment that we collectively inhabit. Personally, making ethical decisions as they relate to other industries such as banking and the like are hard to make because these industries do a good job at obscuring their inner and often questionable workings. Perhaps what is needed is for more industrious people to advocate for ethical practices in all facets of life and more information disclosure of the wrong doing that goes on, to seep into the minds of people. I think that is when a more noticeable lifestyle change will occur in the population.

 

[Josie]

Actually, it was the other way around for me. My ethics brought me to veganism.. I was already "voting with my dollar" and I truly believe that's exactly what we do. We're paying for the world we want to live in, so I try my best to be aware of what my money is actually supporting. Everything is so interlocked though, it can be very hard.. I can't drive myself crazy like that lol.

I was never a big meat eater. Didn't like the taste much; it was very rare if someone could make it in a way I liked and I couldn't be bothered. I believed we needed it for health though, which is completely untrue, so my sadness over the animals had to take a back seat and I ate just enough to make me feel I was doing right by my body. I hated it though. I've always been an animal person and eating meat actually messed with my well being. I'm very sensitive lol.. I'm empathetic to a fault sometimes. That said, humans rely on dead animals for far more than most people realize.. I don't think there are many true vegans out there because of this. All we can do is our best.